Service Updates & Upcoming Public Holidays – w/c 12th September

Here you will find the latest UK & global service updates and a list of upcoming worldwide public holidays. This is updated throughout the week with latest information available.

UK Service Updates

Normal deliveries & collections of mail should be made in most parts of the UK today.

International Service Updates

Australia – Australia Post have informed us that staff of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, who are responsible for customs clearance in all inbound offices of exchange, are planning a one-day strike on Friday, 12 August 2016. This will cause delays to all inbound mail, both on 12 August and on the days following the strike, until the backlog is cleared. Resolved (issue start date: 12/08/16)

Australia – We have been informed that the staff union in the Australian public service, which includes the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) and the Department of Agriculture, which oversee the Customs clearance in all inbound OEs in Australia, has announced they will ask their members to go on strike on Friday 9 September 2016.
The strike action will lead to delay on all inbound mail, both on 9 September and in the days following the action, due to the backlogs following the delays. Ongoing (issue start date: 09/09/16)

Brazil – A tornado has caused severe damage to the city of Campinas in São Paulo state. Expect delays for mail sent to this area. Ongoing (issue start date: 05/06/16)

Brazil – The designated postal operator of Brazil has informed us that the delivery of letter post mail is experiencing delays due to customs control and industrial action in Brazil. Delays are to be expected.

UPDATE:Brazilian customs officials have has undertaken further industrial action in a dispute over pay increasesa as of 19th July. It is not known at this time how long this strike may last. Ports and points of entry are being affected by the strike at different degrees. Last week, customs officers in Brazil caused long delays at the Tom Jobim international airport in Rio de Janeiro; however, last week’s action was local in nature. The current action is a national strike. Continuing delays should be expected.Ongoing (issue start date: 01/07/16 – updated 22/07/16)

Brazil – We have been advised that due to changes in transportation logistics during the hosting of Olympic Games, mail delivery services to Rio de Janeiro may be delayed from 19 July to 20 September 2016. The following postcodes will be affected: 23900, 25870, 27300, 27998, 28180, 28360, 28430, 28495, 28500, 28640, 28680, 28845, 28900, 28930 and 28950. Ongoing (issue start date: 19/07/16)

Canada – Canada Post is working on contingency measures to serve the people of Fort McMurray displaced by the fires. Delivery to the area is currently suspended. All mail and parcels destined for Fort McMurray will be held securely in Edmonton until plans are in place. Resolved (issue start date: 06/05/16)

Canada – As advised by the postal administration of Canada, due to the mail backlog at the office of exchange some mail sent to Canada will be subject to delay. Regions being affected include post codes beginning with R, S, T, V, X and Y. place. Ongoing (issue start date: 10/05/16)

China – The G20 summit will be taking place in Hangzhou, China from the 04-05 September 2016. Due to enhanced security measures, customs and delivery delays are to be expected from Thursday 18 August 2016 to Wednesday 07 September 2016. In particular the following areas are impacted; Zhejiang Province (postcodes beginning with 31 and 32), Hangzhou city, Xiaoshan District, Yuhang District and Binjiang district. Ongoing (issue start date: 18/08/16)

China – China Post have informed us that owing to unprecedented volumes of parcels imported into Shanghai and Guangzhou, there are currently a number of issues with China Customs, resulting in large backlogs in their facilities. These problems are compounded by the high delivery volume within China, resulting in delays in mail delivery. Ongoing (issue start date: 14/07/16)

Ecuador – Due to the recent major earthquake in Ecuador, delays are expected in mail services.Ongoing (issue start date: 16/04/16)

France – There may be a delay for some mail due to an industrial action at the Villeneuve la Garenne Levallois Soti (92300) distribution centre.Ongoing (issue start date: 22/08/16)

Germany – We have been informed that the German union ‘Verdi’ has announced strike action for Wednesday 27th April. The strike will affect all ground handling, check-in and aviation security at the following airports: Munich, Cologne and Dortmund (whole day), Frankfurt (07:00-15:00), Dusseldorf (03:00-14:00) and Hanover-Langenhagen (04:30-15:00). Please expect delays for all inbound and outbound mail to/from Germany. Resolved (issue start date: 27/04/16)

Germany – Deutsche Post have informed us that due to severe flooding, delays should be expected for mail sent to the Bavaria region. Ongoing (issue start date: 02/06/16)

Greece – The Confederation of the Greek workers and the Association of the Civil Servants staged a 48-hour strike from Friday 6th May to Saturday 7th May. This resulted in a 48-hour delay in mail being received, processed and delivered within Greece. Delays should be expected. Ongoing (issue start date: 06/05/16)

India – Heavy rain in northeastern areas of India has resulted in severe flooding and major landslides in the states of Arunachal Pradesh (Tawang district), Assam (districts of Lakhimpur, Jorhat and Sivsagar), and Nagaland (Mon district). Furthermore, the delivery of mail was affected in Pudukkottai (Tamil Nadu province), following a flash strike by postmen. Ongoing (issue start date: 25/04/16)

India – According to media reports, Air India pilots have decided to go on strike. This may cause delays for mail processing and delivery. We will update once we receive official notification and clarification regarding the situation. Resolved (issue start date: 10/05/16)

Indonesia – The customs clearance process of Pos Indonesia will not be operating from 2 to 10 July 2016. All items received during this period will be processed at the earliest on 11 July 2016. Therefore please expect delays in the processing and delivery of your mail and parcel shipments. Ongoing (issue start date: 02/07/16)

Italy – Meridiana and Alitalia staff in Rome (Fiumicino) and Milan (Linate, Malpensa) as well as air traffic controllers and airport workers in Milan (Linate, Malpensa), have announced air traffic strikes from June 17th onwards. Delays may occur. Resolved (issue start date: 17/06/16)

Italy – There may be delays in the delivery of mail affecting the following postcode areas, 02XXX, 06XXX, 63XXX and 67XXX. This is due to the earthquake on 24th August. Ongoing (issue start date: 24/08/16)

Italy – We have been informed that on the 10th/11th July, Techno Sky air traffic controllers called a 24-hour strike. Slight disruption may occur to the delivery of mail for a short period. Resolved (issue start date: 10/07/16)

Italy – Heavy rain and flooding has caused traffic disruptions in parts of Central and Southern Italy. Apulia as well as regions on the Adriatic Coast including Marche, Abruzzo and Molise were particularly affected. Ongoing (issue start date: 10/07/16)

Italy – Railway unions in Italy have announced a 24-hour rail strike for June 23 – 24, which will particularly affect cargo traffic in the country. Delays may be encountered.

UPDATE: All Further strike action has been announced for the 22nd July and potentially the 23rd and 24th July as well. Resolved (issue start date: 23/06/16 – updated 22/07/16)

Ivory Coast – Customs in Ivory Coast are observing a strike which is due to end on Friday 29th April. Delays are to be expected. Ongoing (issue start date: 28/04/16)

Japan – Heavy storms have hit Thailand and Japan. In Japan, heavy rain has particularly affected the Kumamoto Prefecture, causing flooding and landslides. This situation will affect the reception and delivery of postal items. Please note that service delays are expected. Resolved (issue start date: 20/06/16)

Japan – Japan is strengthening their customs inspection of inbound mail as part of counter-terrorism measures. Therefore, Japan Post has requested all items containing goods are accompanied by the required documents. Please attach a customs declaration form to postal items containing goods, and provide accurate information on the contents for customs declaration. Failure to comply with this request could lead to delays or the return of mail items sent to Japan. mail services to Libya are currently suspended. Ongoing (issue start date: 29/03/16)

Kenya – Flooding in Mombassa county have caused considerable damage to roads and buildings. Delays in mail delivery is to be expected. Ongoing (issue start date: 24/04/16)

Mongolia – The 29th June 2016 has been declared a public holiday due to the parliamentary election being held in Mongolia. Consequently there wil be no delivery of letters, parcels and EMS items on this date.Resolved (issue start date: 29/06/16)

Morocco – There are currently delays in getting mail to these destinations due to an increase in seasonal passenger travel.Resolved (issue start date: 27/07/16)

Nepal – An earthquake, approximately 50 miles north west of Kathmandu, has caused severe damage in northern Nepal. Severe disruption to mail services nationwide is to be expected.

UPDATE: All mail services in Nepal have been officially suspended and Kathmandu Airport is now closed to all commercial cargo due to the humanitarian relief effort in the region. Ongoing (issue start date: 27/04/15 – updated 30/04/15)

New Zealand – We have been informed of possible service disruptions to New Zealand’s inter-island freight network as the inter-isander’s Aratere ferry was taken out of service to undergo major maintenance work in mid-June. Any disruption is anticipated to continue until approximately mid-August. Ongoing (issue start date: 15/06/16)

Namibia – As a result of a breakdown of some IT systems since June 22nd, there will be delays in the delivery of letters, parcels and EMS items. Resolved (issue start date: 22/06/16)

Norway – The main highway between Oslo and Bergen is closed due to a landslide, it is anticipated that this will take a number of days to re-open. Delivery delays are expected in the West of Norway. Ongoing (issue start date: 10/06/16)

Peru – An earthquake hit southern Peru causing numerous buildings to collapse and roads to be blocked in the Arequipa region. The quake caused damage throughout the Colca Valley and several areas have been cut off. Mail and parcel delivery delays should be expected in the affected areas. Ongoing (issue start date: 08/08/16)

Portugal – All CTT Correios (PT) informs that the handling agency “Groundforce” has announced strike actions in Portugal for a period of three days, from 1st July until 3rd July. These actions will have an impact on the processing times of inbound, outbound and transit mail.Resolved (issue start date: 01/07/16)

Saudi Arabia – It has been advised that, with immediate effect, Saudi Arabian Customs has introduced some changes for all Non-Document shipments sent to Saudi Arabia. All B2C shipments that contain materials other than documents/printed matter will require the Consignee’s ID number. Where this is not provided, the parcel may be delayed in clearing customs until the ID number is obtained from the consignee. All B2B shipments of non-document materials will require a Commercial Registration Form from the consignee. This will be requested from the consignee when arriving in the country and upon receipt of the form, the parcel can be cleared through customs. Ongoing (issue start date: 15/04/16)

Serbia – The designated operator of Serbia, Public Enterprise Post of Serbia, is in the process of upgrading its systems. Consequently, delays in the transmission of data may have been experienced between 25 and 27 June 2016 which may result in mail and parcels to Serbia experiencing slight delays. Resolved (issue start date: 27/06/16)

Slovenia – The sorting center in Ljubljana, where the office of exchange is located was affected by fire. All operations were terminated and Pošta Slovenije did not forward any mail that morning. The forwarding of outbound mail and delivery of inbound mail are expected to be affected for the coming days. According to Pošta Slovenije, no postal items have been damaged. Ongoing (issue start date: 20/07/16)

Spain – Pilots of the Spanish airline Air Europa,have announced the final dates of their strike: The work stoppages will take place from July 30th to and including August 2nd. Flight availability and freight capacity to Spain may be affected during this time. Resolved (issue start date: 30/07/16)

USA – Delivery The US Postal Service is in recovery phase following to severe flooding in the Louisiana region. Several offices have been impacted and thus have moved operations to alternate sites. Postal Service facilities throughout the region are working to move mail and while delivery service is impacted, the Postal Service will resume normal operations for customers as quickly as possible. Ongoing (issue start date: 15/08/16)

USA – Due to tropical storm Herminie in East coast (Florida to Virginia) the postal services are impacted and customers may experience service delays. Ongoing (issue start date: 03/09/16)

Vietnam – Torrential downpours have caused severe floods and landslides to much of the far north of Vietnam. More floods are expected this week. Mail and parcel delivery delays will be expected in the affected areas. Ongoing (issue start date: 15/08/15)

Yemen – All mail services to Yemen have now been suspended. Ongoing (issue start date: 27/03/15)

Zimbabwe – The designated operator of Zimbabwe, Zimpost, is currently experiencing IT-related issues which have been affecting the performance of the IPS system since August 4th resulting in delays to international mail. Ongoing (issue start date: 04/08/15)